


Halloween Hijinks

by OtterlyDeerlightful



Series: Holiday Hullabaloo [1]
Category: LazyTown
Genre: Awkward situations, Flirting, Halloween, Halloween Costumes, It's Disguise Time, M/M, Pre-Relationship, Secret Identity Fail, Someone terrible at attempting and recognizing flirting tries to write characters flirting, Trick or Treating, originally inspired by a tumblr post
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-14
Updated: 2017-11-01
Packaged: 2019-01-17 09:29:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 17,235
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12362754
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OtterlyDeerlightful/pseuds/OtterlyDeerlightful
Summary: Sportacus gets into the Halloween spirit and dresses up with the kids for trick-or-treating. Thinking that he is unrecognizable, the hero decides to try his hand at finally flirting with his crush, Robbie Rotten.





	1. PART I

**Author's Note:**

> This was originally inspired by a prompt I found months ago on Tumblr, but I can't find it anymore. If you spot it send it along so I can give credit and link to it as an Inspiration!

Sportacus had been on the fence about the whole Halloween… _thing_. At first, it seemed that the holiday was simply an excuse to devour stomach-churning amounts of candy and other sugar-laden treats. While treating oneself now and then was perfectly fine, Sportacus simply bring himself to condone a holiday that encouraged nothing but unhealthy indulgence. At the same time, the kids had started looking forward to the day well over a month before its arrival, and the hero just couldn’t bring himself to take away the excited anticipation in their eyes whenever they spoke of their ‘tricks and treats.’

As the end of October drew closer, however, the man started to learn about the other aspects of the foreign holiday. While Ziggy and Stingy were still heavily focused on the amount of candy they would receive that night, the other children were eager to celebrate in other ways. Pixel would update them daily on the progress he was making in creating what he called the Ultimate Technological and Frighteningly Realistic Haunted House of Terror. Trixie was looking forward to horror movie marathons and playing pranks on everyone in town, which Sportacus was admittedly a little worried about given the girl’s already-established reputation for sometimes taking things a bit too far. Stephanie, though, was far more focused on finding just the right costume to wear for the special day.

“ _Everyone_ dresses up on Halloween!” the bubbly young lady had explained when Sportacus had asked her about it. “Halloween is the one night of the year where you can be someone _completely_ different from who you are! It’s all about playing pretend and having fun with friends and being anything you can think of! It’s a lot of fun! I think I’m going to dress up as a mermaid this year.”

“Well, _I’m_ going to be a dragon!” Trixie interjected the moment she realized her friends were having a conversation about their costumes.

“And I’m gonna be a werewolf! Or a cowboy,” Ziggy said as he furrowed his small brow in thought. “I dunno which yet.”

“ _My_ costume is going to be the best!” Stingy said proudly.

“What are you going to go as, Stingy?” Stephanie asked curiously.

The boy tugged at his yellow vest and refused to lift his eyes. “Well…I’m not exactly sure yet. But I know it’ll be the best one!” he added quickly.

“You should be a pirate, Stingy!” Ziggy happily supplied.

The older boy mulled over the thought. “That’s not a bad idea, actually. All that treasure…”

“Aw man, I forgot all about our costumes!” Pixel cried in a sudden panic. “I’ve been so busy with my Ultimate Technological and Frighteningly Realistic Haunted House of Terror that I totally forgot to come up with that I’m going to be!”

Sportacus rested a reassuring hand on the worried boy’s shoulder. “Don’t worry, Pixel. Halloween is still two weeks away. That’s plenty of time to come up with the perfect costume.”

Stephanie nodded in agreement.

“What are you gonna be, Sportacus?” Ziggy asked curiously.

The hero froze as five pairs of eyes stared at him in anticipation. He forced a smile and a hopefully carefree-looking shrug. He hadn’t planned on partaking in the sugary Halloween festivities with the kids, but…they all looked so eager for him to join them in their fun. Besides, Stephanie was right; it sounded fun to wear a costume and play your friends. He could enjoy _that_ part of the night, at least.

“I don’t know yet,” he answered honestly. “I’ll come up with something. Like I said, Halloween is two weeks away yet. There’s still time to come up with a good costume!”

That had been two weeks ago.

It was the morning of Halloween, and Sportacus still didn’t have a costume. He had thought himself saved when learning that actual Halloween _stores_ existed for this time of year but, now that he was standing in one, the hero realized that he was more lost than ever. Few options were left and the little shop looked nearly bare after a month of buildup. Most of the items that were left were clearly made for small children, though a few random items looks like things Sportacus might be able to utilize.

He sifted through the sparse racks while the employee at the register watched him with unabashed curiosity. The young woman looked Sportacus up and down with a puzzled expression on her face. He did his best to ignore her, but he had to admit that he did feel a bit exposed under her gaze. A health-conscious hero shopping in a store glorifying a holiday centered largely around candy and mischief probably was not the best image for Sportacus to share with the public. But the children were looking forward to trick-or-treating with him, and he couldn’t back out of his commitment now.

“Uh…need any help?” the employee asked as she walked out from behind the register to close the distance between them.

Sportacus suddenly felt very hot, like a spotlight had decided to shine right on him. No hiding now, it seemed.

“Just…trying to decide on a costume,” the man admitted sheepishly.

The young lady looked like she was trying to suppress a laugh. “Superhero not good enough?”

Sportacus stared at her, not understanding her question for a few good seconds. The correction that he wasn’t so much a _super_ hero as a _slightly-above-average_ hero stayed curled inside his throat. The poor worker shifted from one foot to the other awkwardly, clearly worried that she had stepped over some sort of line she hadn’t noticed. Sportacus’ eyes suddenly lit up with glee when the source of her discomfort finally registered for him. She didn’t realize he was a hero at all—she thought he was _already_ wearing a costume!

While a small piece of him wanted to be offended by the mistake, the rest of Sportacus immediately realized that he didn’t have to worry about his reputation or preconceived notions on heroes at all. He could pretend to be any normal customer, just another citizen off the street trying to put together some last-minute preparations for the holiday. How… _freeing_ it felt to have those worries lifted from his shoulders. Was this was Robbie always felt like when he wore his disguises?

“Oh…no, no,” Sportacus answered as last, his usual bright smile returning now that he knew he was free of his usual societal expectations. “I, uh, wore this last year. I was going to wear it again, but, um…I thought maybe I should try to wear something different instead.”

The store employee visibly relaxed. He was so good at lying that it borderline frightened him. She took a look at what was left on the surrounding racks and shelves, humming to herself as she thought.

“Do you have any ideas in mind?” she asked. “We don’t have too much left, but I’m sure we can throw something together for you.”

Sportacus gave an awkward shrug. “I wasn’t really sure, to be honest. I’m…not very creative, I’m afraid.”

At least that part of his story wasn’t a lie. Otherwise, Sportacus wouldn’t be here right now.

“Well, we’ve still got a couple of our staples left. What about a devil?”

Sportacus made a face. The very thought of it made him uncomfortable. The woman seemed to understand.

“How about a pirate? We still have a few hats, and I _know_ there are a couple hooks still up by the register.”

Sportacus shook his head, recalling the ideas that the children had wanted to use for their own Halloween costumes. “One of my friends was thinking about being a pirate,” he explained. “I wouldn’t feel right doing the same thing.”

She nodded. “I get it, no worries.” She looked Sportacus up and down with a thoughtful look before continuing. “The hero look suits you, you know. May I ask why you want to ditch it?”

Sportacus tried not to smile too much. “I, um…well, I wear this…a lot,” he said carefully. “I thought that this time I should try something a little different. If I am to be honest, I think everyone expects me to show up tonight wearing something very similar to this no matter what I choose.”

It was disappointing, but true. A few days ago Ziggy had asked the hero if he planned on going trick-or-treating as a police officer or a fireman. Another authority figure whose job it was to help people. At the time, Sportacus had told the boy that he hadn’t decided yet, but that was only a half truth. The man had entertained the same ideas himself but…it just didn’t seem to fit Stephanie’s explanation of Halloween costumes and what should be expected of them. The one time of the year he could be someone complete different…

A smile pricked at his lips as he mulled over those words.

“I know that look,” the woman giggled before him. “That’s the look of inspiration, isn’t it?” she asked. “What are you thinking?”

Sportacus took a quick visual inventory of the props around him. He picked up a nearby package that contained what amounted to an oversized bandana. He grinned at the picture of the smiling model depicted on the cardboard label and pointed at the picture. “Do you have anything like this?” he asked hopefully.

She chuckled to see Sportacus’ enthusiasm. “I think we’ve got something pretty close. This way.”


	2. Part II

Sportacus set his fists firmly on his hips as his eyes swept over the image before him. Black from head to toe stared back at him. Black pants, shirt, bandana to take the place of his beloved blue cap, dark pirate gloves commandeered from one of the store’s remaining pirate outfits, and a pair of his own boots temporarily painted to match. The only thing that gave him away was the colorful “10” on his belt that stuck out from the rest of his attire like a sore thumb. Sportacus turned his eyes from the mirror for just a moment to tightly tie a black strip of fabric around his crystal’s radiant casing. There. The illusion was complete.

Sportacus found he was actually rather impressed with himself. The transformation from slightly-above-average hero into a renegade bandit was a success. If he didn’t know any better, Sportacus would swear that the handsome man looking gazing out from his mirror was another person entirely. A part of him hoped that Stephanie would be proud of him—this outfit was the _exact opposite_ of his regular persona! He wondered if Robbie would be proud of Sportacus’ costume as well. He certainly hoped so.

The hero suddenly felt a bit warm at the thought. His villain was the absolute Master of Disguise. In spite of always trying to run Sportacus out of town or keep the children from playing and being active, Sportacus had to admit that over the years he had begun looking forward to the man’s antics. He admired Robbie’s creativity, passion, and sheer skill in his craft. Would he approve of Sportacus’ Halloween efforts? Maybe for just one night—with Sportacus able to cast off his role as town hero—they could be partners…friends, rather than enemies. The thought awakened a fidgety butterfly that lived in Sportacus’ chest from time to time.

But no. No, his Halloween costume—his _disguise_ —wasn’t quite finished yet. At least not by Rotten standards. Sportacus _looked_ that part of a bandit, yes, but his brilliant outfit, as good as it looked, was still just that: an outfit. Robbie always developed an entire character around his disguises, and the hero decided that he must do the same. Sportacus folded his arms over his chest and thought.

“Bandicus?” he asked the air before promptly shaking his head. “ _Nei, nei. Eitthvað annað._ Hmm…ah, Sportasteal!”

The hero stood there for a second, then decided that, while something Robbie would probably call him, it probably wasn’t a very good name for his newly created character. With a heavy sigh, Sportacus started to pace the length of his ship. His strides quickly turned into a springing step before evolving into an alternating skip-jump-handstand combination. It made thinking a bit easier.

“How does Robbie always come up with such good names for his disguises?” the hero asked the air in obvious frustration as he landed back on his feet once again. 

Sportacus shook his head before glancing back at himself in the mirror. He was the spitting image of a bandit, a thief, a scoundrel. He should be able to mold that into a good persona for the kids’ Halloween festivities somehow. Sportacus folded his arms again. He had to come up with _something_.

“Thief,” he muttered to himself. “Rogue. Criminal. Think, Sportacus…”

After a minute or two of deep thought, a smile spread across the hero’s face. He snapped his fingers in triumph and threw back his shoulders with pride.

“That’s it! _Lawless_! Lawless D. Linquent! Master bandit and…and roving villain!”

Yes, the name was perfect. And the farthest from being a slightly-above-average hero as one could get. Even Robbie would be impressed, he was sure. Sportacus certainly wanted to show his new Halloween costume off to the children, of course…but he wanted to show it to Robbie, too. He wanted to impress the villain. Robbie may not be interested in being friends with Sportacus, but that had yet to stop him from caring so much about the mysterious man who lived underground. Oh, but that posed a new problem, didn’t it?

Sportacus had spied Robbie buying a plethora of candy and other Halloween-themed treats and decorations over the last fortnight. The man clearly loved the holiday, and if dressing up was as important to Halloween as the kids all made it sound, there was no telling who or what Robbie might be that evening. The villain’s genius work fooled the townsfolk all the time; Sportacus couldn’t begin to fathom how perfect Robbie’s disguise might be if he put in _extra_  effort for something as special as Halloween. What if Sportacus couldn’t find Robbie at all for the duration of the night? How would he know the villain’s opinion on his new bandit persona then? Sportacus sighed, watching the shoulders of his reflection fall ever so slightly.

Well, even if he _didn’t_ get to see Robbie Rotten, he decided, at least the hero could show his costume to his young friends. He was sure that they would love it at least, if only because that meant he could go trick-or-treating with the group. He realized that he was excited to see his friends’ costumes as well. Sportacus nodded to himself. Robbie or no, he would have fun tonight. Even if he _was_ going to be surrounded by sugary sweets at every turn.

He still needed to come up with a _character_ to go along with ‘Lawless D. Linquent,’ however. That might take a bit more thinking on his part. Sportacus never claimed to be good with games of pure make-believe, and he was certainly in that territory now. Well, his Halloween persona certainly couldn’t have too keen on authority figures, given his profession, so there was that, at least. But what about everything else?

Sportacus dismissed his mirror just as a cylindrical tube decided to pop into his peripheral vision. The hero happily as he snatched it out of the air, the problem at hand temporarily forgotten.

“I’ve got mail!” he observed cheerfully, already able to guess what the letter was about.

He unfurled the piece of paper, recognizing Stephanie’s beautiful penmanship instantly. He quickly skimmed through her short note.

“The kids are ready to trick-or-treat!” he said as he set the letter aside. “I guess I’ll have to figure out Mister Lawless as I go, or I’m going to be late.” Sportacus shrugged before excitedly striking his favorite pose and dashing over to where his trick-or-treating bag sat by the wall.

“Door!” he called as he grabbed the surprisingly plain accessory and flipped out into the crisp autumn air.

Sportacus located his friends quickly, doing his best _not_ to leap into their midst as he usually did. That would, ironically, not be surprising enough of an entrance. He had to look as _un-Sportacus_ as possible. He tried to keep an even pace as he approached. The hero reached into his it-has-to-look-as-authentic-as-possible bandit sack and pulled out a thin black mask as he went. The final touch. Sportacus tied the strip of fitted fabric securely to his face and gazed out over his beloved LazyTown through new eyes…figuratively speaking, anyway.

The children were all chittering excitedly amongst themselves, each of them decked out in their own unique costumes that Sportacus couldn’t help but admire. True to their word, everyone was dressed exactly as what they had pledged. Their outfits looked mostly, if not entirely, homemade and the man couldn’t help but feel a tinge of embarrassment that he hadn’t made his own Halloween costume himself.

Stingy was a wonderfully decorated pirate with a treasure chest-shaped tick-or-treating bucket to match. He looked rather comfortable where he sat, beaming with pride as he showed off his mode of transportation. The boy’s yellow car had, for the night, at least, been transformed into a small one-man pirate ship for him to sail through the town. His trusty piggybank was securely tied to his left shoulder with an eyepatch to match its owner’s.

Pixel had apparently decided on a very futuristic-looking costume. The boy wore what Sportacus would almost call a complete exoskeletal frame of some kind, though it didn’t seem to hinder the boy’s movement at all, which was good. He had electronic parts tied to him everywhere to the point where Sportacus couldn’t tell if the antennae that sprouted from Pixel’s silver-painted helmet were supposed to signify he was an alien, or if they were instead designed to pick up some kind of radio waves. Maybe both.

Sportacus hadn’t been sure exactly sure how Stephanie would be able to pull off dressing as a mermaid for Halloween, but the imaginative girl had managed to pull it off; there was absolutely _no_ confusion as to what her costume was supposed to be. The hand-sewn pink skirt that tapered into a shining fish tail was unmistakable. Adding to her beautiful tail, Stephanie also wore a loose green shawl over her shoulders that looked remarkably like seaweed. Her hairband had a series of seashells attached and the child wore a necklace to match it. Sportacus had to admit, he was impressed.

Ziggy, apparently, never did manage to decide between his top two costume choices. The compromise, however, was delightfully creative. The little boy wore a full cowboy’s outfit, complete with an almost-too-big-for-him Stetson sitting atop his head. The boy’s face was expertly painted to imitate a werewolf’s furry cheeks and wet nose. A fuzzy brown tail was pinned to the seat of his pants, and his hands were deep within clawed gloves to add to the effect.

Trixie wore what looked like a cardboard dragon head atop her own, complete with glued-on jewels to accent the shimmering scales. She was dressed almost entirely in green and dragged a long stuffed tail behind her. In spite of its simplicity, he could tell that a lot of work went into the costume. Sportacus could see what looked like a can of silly string tucked away in her pocket and he made a mental note to keep an eye on her throughout the night. Sportacus thought for a moment that the girl had spotted his approach, but she quickly turned away to whisper something to the group instead. Good. She wouldn’t spoil the surprise.

“Hello, everyone!” Sportacus said cheerfully as he walked up to his friends, desperately trying to remember to stay in-character. “I, uh…it looks like you are all ready to go trick-or-treating. Do you mind if I join you?” Perfect opening.

Trixie tried to stifle a snort before she answered. “I dunno, Mister. I don’t think we’re supposed to talk to strangers!”

Sportacus felt a bit of pride strike his chest. Sure, the girl’s words threw a bit of a wrench into his plans, but he was glad that Trixie was being so safety-conscious. It was important for the kids to be aware of stranger danger, especially on a night known for so much mischief.

Beyond that, Sportacus found himself elated that he had gotten such a response in the first place; his costume really _was_ good! Trixie—and the other children as well, from the look of things—were completely fooled! The power over others’ perception was a bit intoxicating. Sportacus was beginning to understand why Robbie was so keen on his disguises.

“That is very true,” Sportacus agreed with an affirmative nod. “It is very important to stay safe and not talk to people that you don’t know.”

“Well,” Stephanie giggled, covering her smile with a hand. “Who _are_ you? I don’t think we’ve _ever_ seen you around LazyTown before!”

Stingy looked like he was trying hard not to laugh. Pixel’s gaze was focused elsewhere, and Ziggy was busy covering is mouth with both of his furry hands while his little eyes sparkled. They all looked so happy for their Halloween fun to begin.

Sportacus puffed out his chest, his hands taking their instinctual place on his hips. “I,” he announced proudly, “Am known as Lawless! _Lawless D. Linquent_ , the renowned, ruthless bandit! You have heard of me, I’m sure.”

This was more fun than Sportacus had anticipated.

“Heh. Are you…” Pixel made a strange sound through his nose. Sportacus hoped he wasn’t getting some sort of cold. “…are you g-gonna rob us?” the boy asked. “We don’t have any candy to steal—we haven’t even hit our first house yet!”

Ziggy nodded, hands still clamped over his mouth for some reason.

“Well, then I guess I cannot steal from you if there is nothing to take,” Sportacus agreed in amusement. “ _After_ you go trick-or-treating, however, may be a different case, though. I would hold onto your Halloween treats if I were you,” he teased playfully.

“We won’t _get_ anything if we don’t _go_ trick-or-treating!” Stingy pointed out in a huff, clearly starting to get a little frustrated that they were all still standing around doing nothing.

Stephanie looked amused. “Well, we can’t yet. _We have to wait for Sportacus_ ,” she said, glancing over at the disguised hero. “ _You_ haven’t happened to have seen him, have you, Lawless?” she asked. “We’ve been waiting an awful long time and we _can’t_ go trick-or-treating without him.”

Oh no. In all the excitement, Sportacus hadn’t planned on this hang-up. He couldn’t exactly be in two places at once to keep up his charade as Lawless, but he couldn’t bear to disappoint the children by not ‘showing up’ to meet them. His hands were tied. With a defeated sigh, Sportacus reached up and removed his mask.

“ _Sportacus!_ ” all the children cried in unison.

The man got the feeling that if Robbie were here, he would probably be laughing at the hero right about now. Sportacus shrugged and smiled.

“You got me,” he chuckled softly. “So…what do you think of my costume?”

“It’s really good, Sportacus!” Ziggy cried, suddenly able to draw his hands away from his mouth. “You look like a real burglar!”

Trixie laughed, hands on her hips. “Yeah! You sure had _me_ fooled,” she said as she elbowed Stephanie standing next to her. “Right, Pinky?”

The pink mermaid rolled his eyes at her friend before turning to the hero. “It looks really good, Sportacus. I never thought you would go as a bad guy! That was a really good choice!”

The man couldn’t help but smile at his friends’ praise. “Thank you, Stephanie, though I must admit that you were the inspiration for it.”

“Me?”

Sportacus nodded. “I am a hero every day.” He glanced down at the mask in his hands before deciding to put it back on. “I thought for Halloween, maybe I should try something completely different.”

Stingy sighed. “Well…it’s not as good as _my_ costume…but I suppose it’s not too bad.”

Pixel shook his head at the pirate’s unhelpful critique.

“Your costumes all look wonderful, too,” Sportacus complimented. “I can tell you put a lot of work into them.”

Ziggy bounced excitedly. “What about mine, Sportacus?”

The hero laughed and nodded. “Very good, Ziggy. One of a kind!”

“I was worried it might look a little silly,” the boy admitted, “But I think it turned out really cool!”

“Can we go trick-or treating now?” Stingy whined impatiently as he drummed his fingers on the steering wheel of his ‘ship.’

Sportacus nodded. “Yes, Stingy. We should get going.” He stood up straight and made sure his mask was secure. “Oh, but…can I ask you all a favor before we start?”

The children looked puzzled.

“What is it, Sportacus?” Stephanie asked curiously.

“Could you…call me Lawless for the rest of the night?” the hero asked sheepishly.

“Oh course we can… _Lawless_ ,” Stephanie assured him with a smile before turning to the rest of the group. “Come on, guys, let’s go trick-or-treating!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I suck at meeting personal deadlines to the point where I'm worried I'm not going to finish this before Halloween!
> 
> At the risk of sounding self-indulgent, please leave comments. They really help motivate me to keep going...plus, they make me feel all fuzzy inside when I see them. :3


	3. Part III

Though he still wasn’t very fond of the idea of the children gathering a hoard of sugary candies, Sportacus had to admit that there was something about trick-or-treating that was a lot of fun. Everyone who opened their door to the group seemed so happy to see them, though a number of them did give Sportacus a strange look for some reason. Even though he couldn’t eat any of it, Sportacus found himself secretly delighted at being handed each household’s sugary tokens of thanks for his visit. He felt so…welcomed, all because he was wearing a Halloween costume and a smile. It was a nice feeling.

“Trick-or-Treat!” the children yelled together after knocking on another door.

The elderly homeowner grinned at the sea of smiling faces and their open bags and buckets.

“Oh, how adorable! You all look so wonderful,” she complimented as she carefully added an orange to each of their treat collections for the evening. She stopped to look up at Sportacus. “And who might you be, young man?” she asked curiously.

“This is our friend Lawless!” Ziggy cried excitedly. “He’s a bandit! But don’t worry, we’re just trick-or-treating, he won’t really rob your house!”

The woman laughed. “Oh, I certainly hope not!” she chuckled before placing an orange into Sportacus’ bag. “There you are, young man.”

Sportacus was grinning from ear to ear. “Thank you very much, ma’am,” he said enthusiastically. “It looks delicious.”

“I remember when you kids _hated_ getting healthy things on Halloween,” the old lady cackled. “It’s so nice to see there’s been a change of heart lately.”

Sportacus nodded. “Candy is fine sometimes, but too much isn’t good for you,” he agreed. “Thank you very much for the sportscandy.”

“Any time, dear. You all have a very happy Halloween.”

“You too!” everyone called as they darted back down the walkway.

Sportacus glanced into his sack of treats again, licking his lips at the sight of the plump, lovely orange. He couldn’t wait to eat it later. He had no idea that people were allowed to give things _other_ than candy to trick-or-treaters. Maybe there was hope for Halloween yet.

“ _Fun_ size. Who thinks something that small is _fun_?”

Sportacus looked up at the sound of a very familiar, very unhappy voice. Even so, he was somehow shocked to see his villain stopped on the sidewalk nearby, busy rummaging through what looked like a violet pillowcase for something to snack on. Robbie was dressed in a very dapper vampire costume, complete with a silken burgundy vest, elegant cape with matching inseam, and glistening white fangs on his teeth that Sportacus could see even at their current distance. The hero was confused when he realized that he had recognized the town villain immediately. Had Robbie decided not to wear a full disguise for Halloween? That seemed like an odd move, given how thorough he usually was…but at least Sportacus had been able to find the man, so there was a silver lining there. Even so, Sportacus was a bit concerned for his self-proclaimed nemesis.

“Hi, Robbie!” Sportacus heard himself call automatically.

No! He had given himself away before he’d even had the chance to show off his costume. _Oh well, no helping it now_ , Sportacus supposed as he let his feet take him toward the other man. Robbie had looked up at the call with a scowl on his face. His expression quickly changed to confusion, though, when their eyes met.

“That’s, uh…Count Rottula, to you. What…are you supposed to be?” Robbie asked slowly as he looked Sportacus up and down.

The hero blinked. Did Robbie not recognize him? The veritable Master of Disguise hadn’t been able to see through his Halloween costume? Sportacus tried with all his might not to bounce on his heels in excitement. The butterfly floating about inside was suddenly doing summersaults. Maybe he could still salvage the encounter and…and what? Reveal that he was Sportacus right away in the hopes that the villain would praise his holiday effort? Then what? He really hadn’t thought this through, had he? Oh no…Robbie was still staring at him. Sportacus had to do something. No…no, _Sportacus_ didn’t need to do anything. _Sportacus_ wasn’t here!

He grinned. “It is an honor to meet you, Count Rottula,” the man greeted with a graceful bow. “I am Lawless D. Linquent, the infamous bandit. Fancy running into you in LazyTown this evening.”

Apparently, as Sportacus had just discovered, Lawless could be quite the suave gentleman when he wanted to be. Not bad for a ruthless criminal.

Robbie snorted. An inkling of a smile tugged at the corner of his mouth as he looked the black-clad man over. “I see. Well, _Lawless_ , I’m rather busy and—”

Ziggy’s voice cut between the two men, making both of them jump in surprise at the interruption. “Come _on_ , Lawless! We’re almost to Pixel’s house!”

Sportacus chuckled. “I will be right there!” He turned to Robbie, his tongue feeling frightening dry for a moment. He unstuck it from the roof of his mouth, cleared his throat, and offered the tall man a smile. “Would you like to join us trick-or-treating, Count Rottula? I’m sure the kids would love it if you came, too. I know _I_ would.”

After a wary glance at the bandit, Robbie seemed to consider the offer. Sportacus watched the villain’s upper lip twitch and flutter with thought as he weighed the pros and cons that such a decision might bring. He looked the bandit up and down with a suspicious sneer. The hero waited patiently and tried to ignore his heart beating in his ears.

“You’re seriously going trick-or-treating?” Robbie asked at long length.

Sportacus nodded. “I am.”

“You?”

“That’s me.” Lawless had a cheeky streak, too, Sportacus supposed.

The vampiric-looking man frowned. The corner of his mouth twitched again while his eyes danced all about Sportacus’ figure as though looking for something. Sportacus offered him a friendly smile.

“Erm… _fine_. I was…going that way anyway,” Robbie grumbled. “Just don’t think you’re going to get me to go to any houses like that—” He pointed at the house Sportacus and the kids had just visited. “—where they think they can hand out disgusting _sportscandy_! It’s _Halloween_ and I’m not going to suffer any of your nasty health things trying to encroach on my candy hoard!”

Sportacus swallowed, praying that he was just listening to a regular Robbie Rotten outburst. Though it sounded an awful lot like a personal accusation. He needed to stay calm. He couldn’t be certain that the villain saw through his costume. No, no…Sportacus had fooled the children with his disguise. Robbie had to have been fooled, too, right? The hero let out a small, nervous laugh in a sad attempt to dismiss the other man’s concerns.

“Wh-why would I bother you with s-something like sportscandy?” Sportacus asked as he forced a smile. “It’s Halloween. Trick-or-treating is all about getting a-as much candy as you can, right?”

Robbie stared at him. Sportacus hoped that his bandana and mask were enough to conceal any sweat.

“Right…” the villain said slowly, squinting at the bandit.

“ _Lawless_!” Trixie yelled from up ahead. “Come _on_ , you’re taking forever! You’re missing all the fun!”

Sportacus blinked and nodded, as if snapping himself back to the moment.

“Well, Count Rottula,” Sportacus said with a sudden bow. “Shall we catch up with the rest of the group? I don’t know about you, but I would rather be able to get a treat rather than a trick for falling behind.”

Even Robbie couldn’t help but smile at the bandit’s silliness in that moment. “At least you have _some_ sense,” he agreed as he sung his pillowcase of candy over his shoulder. “Let’s go, uh…Lawless, was it?” he asked with a smirk.

Sportacus’ head bobbed enthusiastically.

“Then, uh…let’s go, er…trick-or-treating,” Robbie said.

The butterfly in Sportacus’ chest flipped out of pure delight. Robbie didn’t seem to notice. Instead, the villain gave a slight shake of his head as though he was trying to clear water from his ears. He glanced sideways at Sportacus—Lawless—and shook his head yet again before heading to the next house. While Sportacus got a quick, confused glance from the homeowner as always, no one seemed surprised to see Robbie on their doorstep. The children, though, were a different story.

“ _You’re_ trick-or-treating with us?” Stingy asked in shock when Sportacus rejoined the group with Robbie in tow.

Robbie made a face. “What’s wrong with that?” he snapped defensively, his shoulders hunching in an automatic response. “I go trick-or-treating every year!”

“Well, according to this,” Pixel said as he looked down at a lit screen anchored to his left arm, “—trick-or-treating is a tradition largely upheld by kids. Grownups don’t usually go trick-or-treating. They hand out the candy to trick-or-treaters instead.”

Robbie let out a huff and stamped his foot in annoyance. “Well, the fools don’t know what they’re missing! Halloween is about _getting_ candy, not _giving it away_! I’ll hand out candy instead of collecting only after I’m good and buried! Probably not even then!”

Ziggy giggled. “Then you can go as a ghost for Halloween!”

Robbie ignored the child.

“Besides!” he continued, jabbing Sportacus in the ribs a little too hard. “ _He_ invited me! And he might be short, but he’s no kid either!”

The bandit snickered and rolled his eyes at the villain’s silly jab.

“But I don’t think Spor—I, mean Lawless—has ever gotten to go trick-or-treating before,” Ziggy replied. “Everyone deserves to be able to go trick-or-treating at least _once_ , right?”

Sportacus held his breath as Robbie looked down at the boy. He hoped Robbie hadn’t noticed Ziggy’s  slip. His eyes darted from one to the other nervously. He tried to keep himself from fidgeting too much in fear that it would blow his cover for good. Somehow, Robbie didn’t seem phased. The man looked at the bandit and sighed before giving a small shrug.

“That _is_ true,” he admitted. “Even for this dunce,” Robbie grumbled as he nodded toward Sportacus.

The hero smiled.

Trixie groaned where she was now laying belly-down on the sidewalk waiting. She looked more like a slain dragon laying there.

 “If everyone can go trick-or-treating, how come we’re just sitting around talking about it instead of _doing_ it?” the girl moaned.

Stephanie shook her head at her friend’s dramatics, but did turn to address the two adults. “Trixie’s right. If we don’t keep going, we’ll miss the games in the sports park.”

“And we still have to go through the Ultimate Technological and Frighteningly Realistic Haunted House of Terror!” Pixel added excitedly. “I can’t wait to see your faces!”

Trixie grinned from where she was still sprawled on the ground. “You’d better have whipped up a scare for us in there, computer-brains!”

“You just wait and see,” the boy replied smugly.

Ziggy tried not to look too nervous.

Sportacus was still a little preoccupied with the first event mentioned. “There are games?” he asked hopefully.

Robbie rolled his eyes. “Not the kind you’re thinking of, thank heavens,” he muttered in reply.

Well, that was a little disappointing. But Sportacus was still curious to see what sorts of fun might await them after they visited the rest of the neighborhood. He hoped Robbie would join them there as well. It was nice having the man as part of the group _without_ trying to execute some plan to ruin their fun or get rid of Sportacus forever.

“Yeah, my uncle and Bessie were setting up some tables for some fun later on,” Stephanie explained. “And there’s going to be a movie, too! They got a big projector for it and everything. Everyone in town can watch if they want!”

“That sounds like fun,” Sportacus agreed.

Stingy and Trixie both groaned from where they waited.

“We’ll never get there if we just stand here all night!” One whined.

“I don’t have nearly enough candy for my collection yet!” complained the other.

“I want to do the games _and_ the haunted house, but I want the rest of my candy, too!”

Sportacus laughed. “Alright, alright. Let’s get going. Count Rottula, would you like to lead the way?” he invited.

Robbie blinked. His surprise quickly turned to suspicion. “Why?”

“W-well, you said you do this every year,” the bandit pointed out. “You must know all the best houses along our route.” Sportacus smiled fondly. “If anyone here would be an expert on trick-or-treating, it would be you,” he said softly, for some reason feeling a little nervous saying so.

Robbie smiled at Sportacus’ praise. He puffed out his chest proudly and tugged gently on the bottom of his vest. “Yes,” he agreed. “Yes, that’s quite true…” The man cleared his throat. “Alright, you brats, follow my lead! We’re skipping this lame-o house and going over there. _They_ have full-size candy bars.”

Sportacus rolled his eyes as hewatched the overly excited screaming herd of children now following Robbie on his march up the front steps to the nearby house. Halloween was turning out to be far more fun than the hero would have ever expected. He swung his sack of sweets—plus one lovely orange—over his shoulder and jogged after the group.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope this bit wasn't too boring. It feels like it might be, but I couldn't bring myself to change it for some reason.
> 
> Can what feels like a super short fic somehow still be a slow burn? XD


	4. Part IV

Robbie all but pulled the kids toward their next house. Sportacus had never seen the man move so much so willingly. Nor, he thought, had he ever seen the villain so genuinely _happy_. The children followed him without question, occasionally thanking Robbie for his help or complimenting his thorough knowledge of the neighborhood. The vampire man’s fangs were on full display as he guided his devoted followers from house to house. Sportacus tried not to get in the way, just wanting to revel in the sight of Robbie having such a good time with the kids. He wished all of their days together could be like this. He didn’t think he had ever seen Robbie smile so much.

The villain glanced over his shoulder once, then twice. He peered around the edges of his cape collar as his eyebrows slowly drew closer together. Robbie snapped his head back to the front as the door to the current house opened and a beautiful bowl of Halloween candy appeared before them.

“Trick-or-treat!”

Robbie grabbed a handful of chocolate from the bowl and dropped it into his now-bulging pillow case. He shot Sportacus another glance over his collar before he and the rest of the group turned to head back down the walkway. They started toward the next house. Robbie looked over at him again, a frown on his face. Sportacus wondered what was wrong…Robbie had been happy only a few moments ago.

“ _Alright!_ ” the villain snapped. “What is it?”

The bandit blinked in nonunderstanding.

“ _Well?_ ” Robbie demanded, finally stopping to fully face the only other adult of the party.

The kids turned back to stare, just as confused as Sportacus now.

“Well…what?” the hero asked curiously.

“ _What are you staring at?_ ”

Oh. Sportacus suddenly felt warm. He had liked watching Robbie enjoy himself, but he hadn’t realized that he was _staring_ at the man. He tried to spit out a response, an excuse, an apology, but words wouldn’t come. The kids were watching. Robbie looked like he was getting angry. Why did Sportacus feel so nervous all of a sudden?

“Ah, well…”

Wait a moment. He didn’t need to be nervous. _Sportacus_ didn’t need to be nervous. _Sportacus_ hadn’t been the one staring…at least not from Robbie’s point of view. No wonder the villain was so unnerved; the hero would feel the same way if a _stranger_ were staring at him! The bandit recovered his smile.

“I am very sorry about that, Count Rottula. It’s just…hard not to.”

Robbie glared at him. Clearly, his message hadn’t gotten across.

“When you have a beautiful piece of artwork in front of you, it would be rude _not_ to look,” _Lawless_ clarified.

The villain suddenly went pale, his face now perfectly matching his vampiric attire.

The bandit started walking again, winking at Robbie as he strode past. Sportacus could barely contain his excited energy.

With a whisper, the bandit quietly added “I’d be careful if I were you. I have an eye for beautiful and desirable things…you wouldn’t want to end up _stolen away_ , would you?”

He could hear Robbie gasping in shock and confused awe behind him. Sportacus couldn’t believe he had just said that! And to Robbie Rotten! He bit his lip to keep himself from squealing out loud. Never in his life had Sportacus been so bold. Oh, he wanted to look back, see the look on Robbie’s face…but he couldn’t do it. The goofy look on his own face would ruin the moment. Oh, he had done it—he had _flirted_ with the handsome villain of LazyTown. And it was all thanks to Lawless.

“Come on, kids,” the bandit said happily as he ushered the group down the street. “We can’t keep the next house waiting. See, they’re already waiting on the porch for us!”

Stephanie gave the man a mildly concerned glance before hurrying to keep up with her candy-focused friends. Sportacus was glad she hadn’t commented on anything she might have heard. He felt like he was practically vibrating now. He did his best to keep his energy inside, try to retain his calm demeanor as they continued their trick-or-treating. But inside he was dancing.

Sportacus _loved_ being Lawless! Lawless could be everything Sportacus wasn’t…witty, unbound by the rules, flirty, sneaky, villainous, even… The sheer amount of freedom was genuinely intoxicating. And he _loved_ it! Halloween, Sportacus decided, was a holiday he wished he had partaken in far earlier than tonight. Sportacus only had tonight to be Lawless D. Linquent and he decided he was _not_ going to waste that time. The hero had been having fun so far, but now, he decided, he was truly going to experience everything Halloween had to offer.

“We’re here, we’re here!” came a cry from up ahead.

Sportacus looked up to see the children rushing toward Pixel’s house. The little tech-covered spaceman rushed up to a gentleman with green hair standing outside holding a plastic cauldron of Halloween treats. He set the candy aside to grab Pixel up in a hug.

“Hey, lil’bit! How’s the trick-or-treating going?” the man asked with a laugh.

“It’s going great, Pops! How’s the Ultimate Technological and Frighteningly Realistic Haunted House of Terror been going?” Pixel asked excitedly. “Does everyone like it?”

“There’ve been a bunch of screaming coming from there,” the man laughed as he nodded a head toward the structure sitting next to the house. “But I think they’re roundabout compliments.”

If Sportacus hadn’t known any better, he would have said that the building Pixel’s father was referring to was their garage. It was certainly big enough to be one. The hero couldn’t help but be proud of all the boy’s hard work erecting such a large structure and, apparently, filling it with Halloween scares for his friends and neighbors. He couldn’t wait to see the boy’s handiwork for himself.

“A-are we going…in there?” Ziggy asked nervously as he looked up at the cobwebs, mesh, and skeletons hanging all about the dark entrance to the haunted house.

“We sure are!” Trixie cried excitedly.

Pixel’s father grinned at the girl’s enthusiasm. “If you make it all the way through, you get an extra piece of candy at the end,” he advertised as the children all took their trick-or-treat pieces from the cauldron he held.

Ziggy looked conflicted. He glanced at the bucket of delicious treats, then up at the frightening gateway of terror, and back again to the enticing hoard before him. Sportacus knelt by the child and put a gentle hand on the werewolf-cowboy’s shoulder to get his attention.

“You don’t have to go in if you don’t want to, Ziggy,” the hero reminded the boy in a soft voice.

Ziggy’s eyes briefly darted back toward the candy again. “But I really…erm,” he muttered, clearly embarrassed by his predicament. “Everyone else looks like they’re gonna go in…”

“Just because everyone else is doing something doesn’t mean you have to,” Sportacus reminded him. “Real friends won’t mind if you don’t always want to do the same thing. No one here will make you go in if you really don’t want to.”

Ziggy was quiet for a moment as he mulled over the thought. The boy eventually nodded, but let out a sad sigh. “But what about—”

“How about _I_ go in and _you_ pick out your favorite piece of candy?” Sportacus offered with a smile.

The child’s eyes went wide with instantaneously glee. “Wow, really? Are you sure? But...but I don’t want to take away any of your—”

Sportacus gave him a look. Ziggy blinked and giggled at his own lapse in logic.

“Oh yeah...sugar,” he snorted. “O-okay, then! It’s a deal!” He fell forward to wrap his arms gratefully around the hero’s neck. “Thanks, Lawless! You’re the best!”

“Yes, yes, he’s absolutely lovely,” Robbie grumbled from nearby, his eyes rolling and arms crossed. “Zinky might not be going in, but _I am_. The faster we go through this mess, the faster we get our candy.”

Sportacus laughed after giving little Ziggy one last reassuring hug. “Okay, Count.” He stood and turned to the rest of the group. “Everybody ready to see a haunted house?”

His question was greeted by a choir of cheers. Stingy drove his ‘ship’ over to Ziggy, parking it by Pixel’s father before getting out.

“If you’re not going to go in, could you…guard _my_ pirate ship?” he asked, voice sounding a bit forced. “So no one steals it?”

Ziggy looked shocked at his friend’s show of trust. “Oh…wow! Of _course_ I can, Stingy! You can count on me!” the boy insisted. “I promise _no one_ will touch it!”

“Make sure they don’t,” Stingy said a little too quickly.

The boys hugged before Stingy hurried over to the group waiting to head inside Pixel’s creation. Sportacus smiled down at him.

“What was a very nice thing to do, Stingy,” the hero complimented quietly.

Stingy kept his eyes on the ground as he shrugged in place of a proper response. Sportacus could see a faint tinge of pink on the child’s cheek as Stingy hurried past him to follow his friends into the haunted house. Robbie rolled his eyes at the display, pushing past Sportacus and grumbling about getting this nonsense over with. The bandit shook his head in amusement and headed in after him.

“It’s not like there’s going to be anything actually _frightening_ in here,” he head Robbie grumble as the man followed behind Stingy and Stephanie. “You’ve seen one haunted house, you’ve seen ‘em all.”

Sportacus sighed as he followed behind the pack. He held the heavy dark curtain open for Pixel to bring up the rear. The boy thanked him and Sportacus hurried forward to keep up with the group. He wouldn’t want to lose them in here, even if the building wasn’t very big. Behind him, he could already hear Pixel tapping and typing away at the panel on his arm. The boy mumbled something to himself about ‘good data’ that Sportacus didn’t pay too much attention to.

The inside of Pixel’s Ultimate Technological and Frighteningly Realistic Haunted House was even better designed than Sportacus had imagined it would be. Hidden smoke machines provided the perfect ambiance, and the soundtrack of eerie noises was an excellent touch. Sportacus swore he could see something snaking about in the scenery, obscured just enough by the fog that he couldn’t quite tell if his eyes were playing tricks on him. The occasional flash of light from somewhere in the ceiling mimicked lightning almost a little too well, and Stingy decided to keep close to Sportacus as the soundtrack gave a rumble that sounded a little close to real thunder.

Sportacus heard a squeak from somewhere up ahead. Stephanie was backing away from something unseen on the ground. Through the creaks and groans of the speakers, Sportacus thought he heard shuffling on the floor not far from the group, somewhere masked by the endless supply of fog. Even the hero had to admit that it was a little unsettling. Though…not quite as unsettling as the figure he swore he had seen standing in the corner of the room only moments before. Maybe Pixel had done _too_ good a job on the haunted house; even Sportacus was a bit on edge in here. It was probably a good idea that Ziggy hadn’t come inside with the rest of them.

“No, _you_ go first!”

Robbie’s voice wafted down the line to Sportacus’ ears. He looked up to see the tall villain facing down little Trixie at the head of the line. The pair was apparently fighting to see which of them was going to go into the next room first. And neither wanted the prestige.

“ _You’re_ the adult!” Trixie snapped at the man with a shaking voice while she tried her best to hide how nervous she was under her dragon mask.

“Well _you’re_ the one who wanted to come in here so badly in the first place!” Robbie hissed in response as he folded his arms protectively across his chest.

Stephanie, the next in line, sighed. Her shoulders shivered as she prepared herself. The pink mermaid held her head high and strode up to her friends. She only flinched a little when something hissed at her from the fog. She laid a gentle hand on the shoulder of her fellow mythical creature, but quickly gave a hushed apology when Trixie jumped at the sudden touch.

“How about _I_ go first?” Stephanie asked, looking between her two friends.

Trixie looked a little hesitant, but the vampire across from her simply grinned.

“ _Excellent_ idea, fish girl!” Robbie applauded

He grabbed Stephanie by her shoulders and twisted her to face the dark doorway with its chains and leather straps dangling to obscure their view of the horrors to come.

“You go first!” the vampire said with a smile, giving her a push into the unknown.

Sportacus opened his mouth to scold Robbie for being so unnecessarily rough with the girl, but his heroic lesson was cut short by the sound of Stephanie’s terrified scream from the room beyond.

“Stephanie!” Stingy cried from the hero’s side.

“Pinky!” Trixie yelled with a gasp.

Sportacus lunged forward at the sound of his friend’s terrified cry.

Robbie shoved Trixie to the side. “Outta the way, kid!” he snapped before darting through the doorway.

Trixie looked up from where she had fallen on her behind, a look of total shock on her face. “Sp-Spor—” was all she managed to get out before the hero grabbed her hand and carefully pulled the girl to her feet.

“Don’t worry,” Sportacus replied before he dashed through the doorway himself…just in time to hear Robbie scream and see him trip over a prop gravestone nearby.

The bandit’s belt buckle cried out, a faded light struggling to be seen through the dark cloth. Sportacus rolled quickly to position himself behind Robbie, catching the vampire just before he would hit the ground. Sportacus smiled down at the startled man as his crystal quieted itself.

“You’re lucky I’ve had plenty of practice catching priceless objects just in the nick of time,” Lawless teased lightly. “You should be more careful, Count Rottula. Any blemish on a face as lovely as yours would _truly_ be a crime.”

Robbie’s cheeks turned a bright pink before he started angrily waving his hands in Sportacus’ face, managing to squeak out a “Sh-shut up and put me down! Let go!”

Sportacus rolled his eyes and set Robbie back on his feet. He soon felt a pair of slender, yet surprisingly strong arms wrap themselves around his waist. He looked down at the mermaid by his side and pulled the girl close.

“Are you okay, Stephanie?” he asked softly.

“Yeah…sorry about screaming like that.”

“What happened?”

Robbie let out a shriek, pressing himself back against a—thankfully sturdy—prop tree that was coming out of the wall. A hideous ghoul, complete with drool dripping from its misshapen teeth and tattered clothes hanging from arms with miscolored, rot-streaked skin, stared at Robbie with its one remaining eye. It gave a moan before lurching backward and disappearing into a dark box mostly hidden by the fog. Stephanie couldn’t help but giggle quietly at Robbie’s reaction before pointing to where the disgusting and disturbingly lifelike puppet had disappeared.

“That,” was all she needed to explain.

Sportacus sighed in relief and hugged the girl again, happy that there had been no real danger in the first place. Well, except Robbie’s own clumsiness, that was. Even so…

“That was a very brave thing to do, Count Rottula,” the bandit complimented.

Robbie, who had managed to recover from his fright and was now busying himself trying to dust the haunted house’s cobwebs from his cape, looked up with a scowl.

“What on earth are you blathering about?” he grumbled.

“Jumping in like that to save Stephanie. Even though you were scared, you were the first one to come inside. You even beat me in here. That was very brave of you. Thank you.”

Robbie blinked in surprise. His lip and nose twitched as he tried to process the unexpected compliment.

“I…I,” he stammered embarrassedly, “I did n-no such thing! I, er…that is…” He took in a deep breath and tried to look as stoic as possible, given the circumstances. “Mind your own business, _Lawless_!”

Sportacus chucked at the vampire’s self-conscious outburst. He was about to reply when Trixie burst into the room behind them, soon followed by a shaken-looking Stingy and a grinning Pixel who looked a little _too_ happy about the situation.

“Pinky!” The one girl ran to the other for a hug the moment Stephanie was spotted. “You’re okay!”

“Wh-what happened?” Stingy asked nervously as his eyes darted around the room.

The pink mermaid smiled slyly and looked at Pixel. “ _Someone_ made a super scary haunted house. _That’s_ what happened,” she answered.

The technologically-encased spaceman smiled, looking a little sheepish. The ghoul groaned and launched itself once again from its hiding place. Stingy and Trixie screamed in surprise. Pixel jumped, too, much to everyone’s amusement.

“It wasn’t that scary,” Trixie grumbled as she stomped off to reclaim her place at the head of the line. “I…I just jumped because Stingy jumped, that’s all.”

“Liar,” Stingy muttered as he once again glued himself to the bandit’s side.

The crew pushed through the new room. While there were plenty of similarities between this and their previous environment, this room looked more like they were inside a building that was slowly being taken over by the sparsely populated graveyard they had just escaped. Some old, broken furniture lay scattered about. Small eyes peered out from the bookshelf, darting in and out from between and behind the books and knick-knacks. One could just barely make out movement from inside the dilapidated bureau that was half-hidden behind some sort of bush. The fog still covered everything. Flashes and faux thunder could still be seen and heard, though far muted here, and the group could hear the eerie creaking of floorboards and doorknobs unseen.

“What was that?” Stingy whimpered, pointing to the empty bedframe standing alone in the corner of the room. His eyes stared at the duvet crumpled nearby, no mattress to rest upon. “I-I swear it moved!”

“It..it did _not_ ,” Stephanie denied nervously. “R-right, Lawless?” she asked, hoping for confirmation.

“Well, I didn’t—” Sportacus’ words died in his throat as the blanket stirred with something beneath it.

The children whined. Sportacus’ eyes shifted. He watched what looked like a humanoid silhouette hurry from wall to wall, as if watching them. It was just a haunted house. One made by his friend Pixel. There wasn’t anything here that would actually hurt them. Even so, Sportacus didn’t like the sight of the shadow, and he didn’t like how it seemed to dissolve into the scenery around them. He turned back to the path and continued onward. It looked like there was one more room they had to get through before their little adventure was over.

Sportacus watched Robbie. The man had slunk back from Trixie’s lead and fallen into step near the bandit instead. He had to fight the urge to take the vampire’s hand. Robbie still looked nervous from his last encounter, and Sportacus wanted to reassure him that everything was alright. And he just really wanted to feel Robbie’s hand in his, regardless.

Sportacus couldn’t do something like that, but Lawless might be able to. His bandit character seemed to be turning into a shameless flirt, the hero had noticed. Lawless would take the man’s hand and think nothing of it…and he could only be Lawless for one night, experience what he had been dreaming about for the past year… The bandit wet his lips. His fingers twitched and he reached. Slowly, gently, carefully…

The zombie appeared directly in front of him, cutting Trixie and Stephanie off from the rest of the group. It gave a deep bellow, spittle blowing from its mouth as he stared down the men and boys standing helplessly before it. The creature shambled forward on one twisted leg, reaching out and growling hungrily.

The girls screamed in horror and fear for their friends, neither of them knowing what to do with the appearance of an actual monster in their midst. Robbie let out an ear-splitting shriek, his arms flying out automatically in an attempt to protect himself before his instinct to flee kicked in. He grabbed Sportacus’ shoulder and leaped, jumping into the man’s arms. Sportacus, though caught off-guard by the sudden load, caught Robbie with ease. The vampire buried his face into the bandit’s shoulder while Stingy ducked behind the pair in search of safety.

Sportacus stared into the zombie’s pale, soulless eyes. It took another step toward them and he, in turn, took a step further back. The hero instinctually began searching for an escape route that could accommodate both halves of their party when he realized that, despite the groans and creaks and growls that surrounded him…there was one sound he wasn’t hearing that should have been there. Regardless of the monster standing before him, Sportacus’ crystal was noticeably silent.

The zombie raised a putrid-looking arm and swiped at them. It stumbled with its own shift in weight and fell forward. The creature disintegrated before it reached the floor. Everyone stared where the monster had just been. Except for Robbie, who was still whimpering with his eyes shut and securely nestled in Sportacus’ neck.

“That was… _amazing!_ ” Trixie cried after recovering from the shock. “Pixel! How did you _do_ that?” she demanded.

The boy, who was standing a safe distance back from his friends, wore an enormous smile on his face. Everyone turned to look at him and he shrugged.

“Just, uh...a hologram I, uh, rigged up,” he mumbled. “It, uh…I guess it worked.”

“It did more than _work_ ,” Stingy barked. “I think I just had a heart attack!”

Stephanie waved for everyone to follow. “Come on, guys! I bet we’re almost there, let’s go!”

The children rushed forward, now eager to see what further scares awaited them in the next room. Sportacus nudged Robbie gently, careful not to jostle the man too much. The vampire was still trembling, though only slightly.

“Count Rottula?” he asked softly. “Are you alright? The zombie is gone.”

Robbie looked up, taking in their spooky, yet safe surroundings.

“In my arms again not five minutes after your last fright,” Sportacus heard himself tease softly. “My dear Count, if I didn’t know any better I’d say that you were _dying_ to find yourself in my arms, tonight. You seem to be making a habit out of this. Not that I mind.”

Robbie stared at him with giant eyes. Lawless grinned back and gave a quick wink for good measure.  The vampire’s face was bright red, clashing terribly with the ascetic of his traditional costume. Even so, he didn’t move.

“Are you alright?” the bandit asked in a more serious tone.

There was a pause before Robbie answered. “I don’t think I like this haunted house anymore,” he admitted.

Sportacus felt a tight clenching in his chest. He carefully readjusted the man in his arms, making sure Robbie was secure in his grip. He made certain that both of their trick-or-treat bags were nestled in Robbie’s lap before he started forward again.

“Don’t worry,” the bandit said softly. “You’re safe with me. I promise.”

Sportacus fought the urge to kiss Robbie’s forehead. That seemed a little much without the man’s expressed permission, even by Lawless’ standards. Robbie didn’t reply to Sportacus’ words, but the hero could feel the man relax ever so slightly as he realized that he was welcome to stay where he was. The bandit held his vampire close and let Robbie hide his face in their collar. Robbie shouldn’t have to do anything he didn’t want to do, and Robbie _very clearly_ didn’t want to see what else Pixel’s creation had in store.

The hero had to admit that the sensation coursing through him was overwhelming…yet muddled. He was elated to feel Robbie in his arms, trusting Sportacus so fully to keep the villain safe, even if the danger wasn’t actually real. He always loved when Robbie would leap or fall into his arms—it was the only time the two of them could be close, even if it _was_ only for such a fleeting amount of time. But, at the same time…Robbie wasn’t _in_ Sportacus’ arms right now, was he? The man had sought _Lawless_ for protection. Sportacus always liked to think that Robbie trusted him, at least on some level, and that was why the villain ended up with him so often...but apparently that wasn’t the case. Robbie barely knew Lawless, yet the bandit was apparently just as trustworthy as the town’s hero in Robbie’s mind. It took away some of the magic of the current moment. But that didn’t mean Sportacus wasn’t about to savor this time while he still could. He held Robbie close and kept walking.

The last room, though spooky, didn’t feel nearly so frightening as the last. Sportacus wondered briefly if it was simply because he had someone to watch over now, something to keep him from getting sucked into the fantasy. There were a few more puppet jump scares that frightened the children, and more shadows to make one question their own senses, but nothing so frightening as the zombie hologram. He let Robbie hide in his grasp for the duration, though. Feeling brave, the bandit even rested his cheek softly against Robbie’s hair as they went. Robbie made no move to shoo him. Sportacus tried to keep himself from shivering at their touch, knowing the man would be able to feel it, too, if he did.

“We did it!” Stephanie cried in triumph when she leaped into the last room of the haunted house, which turned out to be a small square room simply painted black with a small light hanging from the ceiling. “We beat the…the…what was it called again?”

“The Ultimate Technological and Frighteningly Realistic Haunted House of Terror,” Pixel supplied with a proud grin. “So…what’d you guys think?”

“It was _awesome_!” Trixie yelled, jumping up and down.

“I…dunno if I’d call it _that_ ,” Stingy mumbled with a visible shudder. “That was…scary.”

“But a lot of fun, too!” Stephanie added. “That was totally amazing, Pixel! No wonder you spent so much time making it—it looked incredible!”

“No kidding. We had to practically _drag_ that boy to bed every night,” a bald man near the exit laughed. “It’s hard to stop our lil’bit when he gets going on a project.”

“Dad!” Pixel cried happily as he ran over to hug the man holding the bowl of candy.

“Hey, Pixel,” he laughed. “So, how do you judge the execution?”

“It went _great_!” the boy cried happily. “I got a ton of data from everyone’s reactions…even _I_ got spooked, and I’m the one who made it! I’m gonna analyze all the data tomorrow and see how I can make the Ultimate Technological and Frighteningly Realistic Haunted House of Terror even better for next year!”

“Please don’t,” Robbie muttered quietly as Lawless gently set him back on his feet. The man let out a deep sigh, shuddered, and started to eye the orange bowl Pixel’s father was holding. “I deserve an extra bonus for putting up with that insanity,” he grumbled quietly to himself.

Everyone began to pick out their extra candies for their victory over the haunted house. Sportacus picked the largest piece of taffy he could find in the mix, certain that Ziggy would love it. Robbie snuck a second piece when it was his turn to pick. No one said anything, everyone exchanging a quick glance of understanding.

“We only have a couple more houses before we’re done,” Stephanie announced as they prepared to leave. “Then we get to see what’s set up in the sports park!”

“Oh, yeah, that’ll be fun!” Stingy said with a smile as he tucked his tasty treasure away in his plastic chest. “Let’s go, everyone. I need to get the last of _my_ candy!”

“Are you and Pops gonna join us for the movie they’re playing?” Pixel asked his father hopefully.

“Wouldn’t miss it for the world, Bitty,” the man laughed, patting his son’s helmet affectionately.

Robbie stuck a lollipop in his mouth. “You ready yet?” he asked Sportacus, his voice as sour as ever, like nothing out of the ordinary had happened and he _hadn’t_ been in the man’s arms whimpering like a baby only minutes earlier.

Sportacus—Lawless—smiled fondly and nodded. After the briefest hesitation, the bandit wrapped his hand around the crook of the vampire’s arm. Robbie stared down at where the bandit’s fingers gently squeezed his sleeve. He bit down on the lollipop stick to keep himself from accidentally inhaling and chocking on his candy.

“Are _you_?” Lawless asked softly.

Robbie nodded slowly, his eyes still a little glazed over and still staring at his arm.

“Good,” the bandit said tenderly as he lead the vampire out of the little building. “Because it wouldn’t be a proper Halloween celebration without an elegant vampire there to oversee the festivities, would it, Count Rottula?”

Robbie blinked and visibly shivered. Sportacus took that as the closest he would get to a verbal response and smiled.

“Then let me escort you, my Count,” Lawless teased as they crossed the lawn.

He couldn’t tell if the chill that ran down his spine was from the wind or his own boyish delight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm determined to finish this on time, aka, posting Part V by Halloween. Let's see if I can manage it!


	5. Part V

“Trick-or-treat!”

Candies were dropped into waiting bags and buckets.

“Thank you!”

Feet scurried down one walkway and up the next.

Sportacus followed, copying his friends’ motions, but his mind was elsewhere.

Exiting the haunted house—excuse himself, Pixel’s Ultimate Technological and Frighteningly Realistic Haunted House of Terror—had felt like a dream. He had been walking with Robbie Rotten, hanging on the man’s arm. Sportacus would be lying if he said he hadn’t dreamed about such a scenario before. Usually some sort of formalwear or springtime stroll through town was involved, but crossing Pixel’s lawn clad in Halloween costumes with sacks full of sugary candy was good enough for Sportacus.

Ziggy had been elated with the giant piece of taffy Sportacus had gotten for him, and thanked the hero over and over for it. It was when the little boy grabbed him for a hug that Robbie had slipped his arm from the bandit’s grasp. By the time Lawless was free of Ziggy’s adorable display of gratitude, the tall vampire was already at the end of the Hyperbyte property. He sighed in disappointment, wondering if he had overstepped his bounds. Robbie hadn’t _protested_ the touch, but clearly…he hadn’t been too keen on continuing it.

“Hey, Lawless,” Stingy asked as he drove along in his pirate ship. “Are you okay? You look kind of down all of a sudden.”

Sportacus forced himself to stand a little taller. He gave the boy a smile. “Oh, I am sorry. I guess I’m just a little excited about the sports park. I was, uh, trying to figure out what sorts of fun might be planned.” Oh, he hated the feeling he got in his chest when he lied to the children.

“Well, don’t worry about that!” the boy said happily. “I got to see some of the things they were setting up earlier! There are tons of booths for games and the movie screen, and loads of pumpkins!”

“That’s because there’s going to be a pumpkin carving contest for all us kids!” Stephanie interjected. “Uncle Milford was picking them out yesterday. There’s one for each of us.”

The bandit smiled. “That does sound like fun. But remember to be careful when you’re carving your pumpkins. You don’t want to cut yourself.”

Stephanie seemed to giggle at his advice for some reason. “Don’t worry, Lawless. We’ll be extra careful. I heard my uncle calling everyone’s parents to make sure there’ll be a ton of supervision for it.” Sportacus didn’t miss how the girl glanced briefly over at the youngest amongst their ranks.

“Last house!” Robbie shouted over his shoulder at the children. “So don’t screw it up! These people always treat me well and I’m not going to have you brats ruin it for me!”

Stephanie rolled her eyes in amusement. “Come on, let’s not keep him waiting,” she said before running toward the house.

The last house. Sportacus sighed, unable to help but notice how Robbie seemed to be looking everywhere _but_ in his direction. Had the hero screwed up that badly? Well, at least after tonight it wouldn’t much matter. Lawless would be gone. Somehow that made him feel even worse. The man shook his head. No. He had to try and salvage the evening. He had been having fun before they ran into Robbie and he was sure that he would be able to enjoy the rest of Halloween if he…decided to leave.

“Hurry you, bandit boy, you’re lagging!”

Sportacus blinked in surprise when Robbie addressed him directly. The villain eyed him with a strange expression, one Sportacus couldn’t decide was annoyance or suspicion. But at least Robbie had spoken to him! Maybe his troubles were all in his head.

“Well, come on!” the vampire sighed impatiently.

The bandit grinned and hopped up to the stoop behind his smaller friends. Robbie shook his head at the overly enthusiastic man by his side and readied himself as Ziggy knocked on the door.

“Trick-or-treat!”

The door opened and the children all held out their goodie bags to collect.

“Oh, look at you!” the woman with long, blond hair laughed when she spotted the party. “And our little Robbie,” she cooed, getting an eye roll in response. “Hey, Shannon! Get out here, it’s Robbie!”

“Oh, wait for me!” A second persona appeared, this one with short black hair and wearing a cloak to match. They held up a camera to their face within seconds. “Say cheese!”

There was a quick flash and the one called Shannon cheered. The woman beside them snorted. Robbie groaned.

“Sorry, sweetie, you know the rules. We have a photo of every Halloween you’ve come by. You’re not getting out of this year’s.”

“I only put up with your nonsense because you give the best stuff,” the vampire mumbled.

Though clearly trying to sound annoyed, Sportacus could see the small smile that tugged at the edges of Robbie’s mouth.

“Best house for trick-or-treating in LazyTown!” Shannon boasted. “Cindy, go get the bags!”

“Already ahead of ya,” the woman laughed as she handed out bags of homemade cookies, brownies, and unique candies to each of the children.

There was a soft chorus of “ooooh”s and “aaaaaah”s as each trick-or-treater received their gift. Sportacus thanked the couple profusely and Robbie gave the one called Cindy a kiss on the cheek. Sportacus swallowed, catching himself staring. He tried to look away.

“Happy Halloween, you guys,” Shannon said fondly. “Even you, stranger,” they said, nodding at Sportacus. “First year I’ve seen you around for Halloween.”

“Yes, who is your new friend?” Cindy asked, raising a playful eyebrow at Robbie.

“I, erm….uh…” The villain’s nose started twitching. He glanced back and forth between the couple and Sportacus. “This is, um…” He bit his lip for a moment. “L-Lawless. Lawless the…something-or-other,” he mumbled quickly. “He’s…visiting.”

Sportacus smiled, giving the pair a bow. “Lawless D. Linquent, infamous bandit, at your service.”

Cindy covered her mouth, glancing over at Shannon with sparkling eyes.

“Nice to meet ya, Lawless. Hope we get to see you again next year. We’ll save a spot for you in the photo album.”

The bandit nodded. “I wouldn’t miss it for the world,” he heard himself say, already regretting it, knowing that he would just be letting the couple down in twelve months’ time.

“Maybe we’ll see you later, Robbie, Lawless. Have a good night, okay, kiddos?”

“We will,” Stephanie promised.

“Yeah! We’re gonna go play games now!” Ziggy cried excitedly.

“It was nice meeting you,” Pixel called back as their little group began to leave. “Happy Halloween!”

Sportacus looked over at Robbie as they started back toward the sports park, noting the fond smile on the vampire’s face.

“They were lovely.”

“Yeah…” Robbie glanced over at Sportacus, looking like he was debating with himself for a moment. “I’ve, uh, visited them since I was about Zonky’s age.”

“That is very nice, Robbie. I bet they really appreciate you coming back every year for Halloween.”

The vampire just shrugged.

“So cool!”

“Come on, Pinky, this way!”

“Wait for _me_ , guys!”

The bandit and vampire looked up as the kids began to scatter. They had certainly reached the sports park…and it was grander than Sportacus had expected. There were booths scattered about, many of them already manned and ready for players to come see what they had to offer. A large area was left open and bordered by holiday decor. The mayor’s stage was erected at its end, lined with pumpkins in preparation for the carving contest. Sportacus could already see Stingy picking out the best pumpkin on display so he could get started on it.

“Wow,” the hero laughed. “This looks fun! Doesn’t it, Count…Count?”

He looked around, unable to spot Robbie anywhere. How could he have lost the man that quickly? The squeak of a turning crank and the sudden flash of a lit-up display quickly distracted Sportacus from his search. He squinted, waiting a moment for his eyes to adjust to the sudden brightness so close to him. A banner unfurled over a previously lonely-looking booth. The hero’s eyes drifted across the bold letters.

_COUNT ROTTULA’S CREATURES OF THE NIGHT_

He blinked, shocked to see Robbie setting up what looked like some sort of carnival game. Sportacus wandered over, taking in the sight of the villain setting out whiffle balls and stacking cans on some barrels.

“What is all this?” Sportacus asked curiously.

Robbie rolled his eyes. “What’s it look like? It’s a _game_.”

Lawless chuckled. “Well I can see that, but…well, to be honest, I never expected you to set something up for the kids like this.”

“It’s not just for the _kids_. Halloween is for everyone. Here, I’ll prove it.” The bandit blinked as a ball was set down in front of him. Robbie nodded toward the cans. “Go for it.”

Sportacus—Lawless—blinked. He swallowed nervously, not wanting to show his strength too much, as it might give him away. He picked up the whiffle ball and gave it an underhanded throw into a set of cans. The little tower collapsed with ease. The hero was surprised to see that Robbie’s game, unlike every actual carnival game he had heard about, was completely straightforward.

“Ding ding!” Robbie cried, raising a finger to the sky “First winner of the evening! Lawless, the hapless bandit!”

Sportacus laughed as the vampire ducked below the booth’s counter. “Hapless?”

Robbie remerged and set down a small metal jack-o-lantern on the counter. A soft blue light glowed inside. Sportacus stared for a second before picking up the trinket. It was barely bigger than his fist,  and it was clearly hand made from bits of scrap metal, filed, polished and painted to imitate the pumpkin with which it shared its familiar shape.

“C-Count Rottula...this is gorgeous. Did you make this?”

Robbie shrugged, then went to go gather and restack his cans. “Of course I did. Halloween is special. Not everyone is the best as carving pumpkins. Some don’t like the mess, some don’t have the time, some just hate to see them rot away after all that hard work. I figured these little alternatives might fix some of those problems. Solar powered, too, from the stem. Set it and forget it, pull it out again next year. And if they don’t like pumpkins, I’ve got some black cats and bats down there, too.”

The hero smiled down at his prize fondly. “That is brilliant. And very thoughtful. These are wonderful.”

Robbie swallowed. “Glad you like it.”

 He dug around in his bulging pillow case and took out some candy, popping it in his mouth and practically melting with its chewy sweetness. Sportacus smiled softly at the man before looking back down at his little pumpkin.

“ _Mmmmm_. The only thing that would make this night better right now,” Robbie mumbled around another piece of candy, “Is if I had twice the goods for myself while I was stuck in this booth for the next hour or so.”

The bandit glanced down at the sack sitting by his feet. He set his pumpkin aside and grabbed it, holding it out to the vampire. “Trick-or-treat.”

Robbie stared for a moment before he shook his head in surprise. “You’re serious?”

Lawless shrugged. “I’m not really one for sweets,” he explained. “Oh, wait!” He set the sack down, and dug through its contents for a minute. “Here,” he offered again now that his precious orange was now safely in hand.

“I, uh…thank you,” Robbie said softly as he slowly took the bag of candy from the grinning bandit.

He stared down at Sportacus’ trick-or-treating collection quietly, a strangely neutral expression on his face.

“You deserve it. These,” Lawless said as he held up his jack-o-lantern, “Are amazing. Your work is impeccable. I would have expected more tricks from you than treats tonight, but you’ve amazed me at every turn.”

Robbie’s jaw flapped uselessly for a few seconds before he shook his head and tried not to blush. “I, er…well, y-you know…I mean…Halloween’s about pranks sure, b-but it’s about fun first! Besides, what kind of Halloween junkie would I be if I kept kids from trick-or-treating?”

Sportacus laughed merrily at that, leaning on the counter. “I suppose you’re right.”

The pair looked up when the whining hiss of a speaker echoed across the sports park. The mayor was holding his ears. Well, the microphone was certainly on. Milford cleared his throat before addressing the small crowd.

“Welcome, everyone, to LazyTown’s Halloween festival! There are plenty of games, snacks, and—” He looked down at the children working before him on the stage. “—it looks like the children have already started on their pumpkins for the carving contest. Let’s put on some music in the meantime and have some fun!”

A high-tempo tune began to waft outward from the stage. Sportacus looked between the townsfolk milling about, the children working on their creations, and then back over to Robbie. The villain was staring out across the field, watching the children have fun. He was smiling. A soft, warm sort of smile. Sportacus wished Robbie would smile like that more often. The vampire seemed to notice Sportacus staring at him from the corner of his eye and quickly threw up his usual scowl.

“What?” the man demanded.

“You have a beautiful smile,” Lawless said quietly. “When you let it show.”

Robbie’s eyes widened slightly. He sputtered, almost spitting on the bandit. Sportacus didn’t seem to mind.

“It, uh…looks like the kids will be busy for a little bit,” Lawless said with a nod toward the stage. “Let’s, um….uh…” Sportacus looked around quickly, trying to come up with an idea. “Let me get you some popcorn!” he said quickly when his eyes spotted a small stand nearby. “It looks like they have toppings,” he added to entice the man’s sweet tooth.

His plan seemed to work. Robbie scrunched his face, eyes drifting between Lawless and the popcorn stand that was too far away for him to duck in and out without attracting the bouncing bandit along the way.

“Erm… _fine_ ,” he mumbled. “Just one bag!”

The bandit ceased his excited bounces and gave the vampire a gracious bow, offering the man his hand. Robbie stared at it for a moment, gritting his teeth, but eventually allowed Lawless to take his hand and lead him around the booth. Lawless couldn’t stop grinning in spite of how nervous Robbie looked by his side. The vampire’s hand firmly in his own, the bandit set his orange beside his little jack-o-lantern and started toward the popcorn stand. He did his best not to skip, in spite of the butterflies that threatened to lift him from the inside.

“Why are you doing this?”

“What do you mean?” Lawless asked a minute later as he handed Robbie a bag of popcorn covered in butter, some kind of syrup, and what he swore was some kind of chocolate. He held his own plain bag close to his chest and far away from whatever it was Robbie had ordered.

“ _This_ ,” the vampire said as he took his bag. “The popcorn. Your trick-or-treat candy. I mean, I know you don’t _like_ the stuff, but you spent all that time…I mean…. _ugh_ ,” he sighed in frustration.

Lawless shrugged as he nibbled on a piece of popcorn while he listened. “I told you. I just…don’t really like candy. Trick-or-treating was a lot of fun, but it will all just go bad if I took it home with me. You’re…not upset that I gave you my candy, are you?” he asked curiously.

Robbie sighed. “It’s not that. It’s…I, um…”

Sportacus noticed how the villain nervously shuffled his feet, how he gripped his bag of popcorn so tightly it was like he was trying to distract himself from something terrible. Why did Robbie look so…unhappy?

Lawless’ face fell. “I thought you were having a nice Halloween,” he said worriedly. “You seemed so happy earlier. W-was it something I said?”

“No!” the vampire said quickly, throwing a hand out in front of him to try and dismiss the notion. “N-no. It’s just, um...look, it’s hard to explain…”

“You can tell me, Count,” Lawless said patiently.

Robbie rolled his eyes for some reason. Sportacus waited and watched the man finger the paper bag in his grasp. After a few agonizing seconds, Robbie shook his head and turned away to head back to his booth. Sportacus stared for a moment, his brain slow to process what had just happened.

“W-wait!” the hero cried desperately as he hurried after the man. “Did I say something wrong?”

“No, _Lawless_ ,” Robbie grumbled, somehow sounding both annoyed _and_ sad at the same time.

The bandit watched his villain helplessly. Something had ruined Robbie’s good mood, and Sportacus was certain that it was him. But he couldn’t figure out exactly what he had _done_ to upset Robbie so much. There had to be something he could do to fix whatever he had done. Robbie loved Halloween, and he had been having such a good time trick-or-treating with the kids. Sportacus was determined to make sure that Robbie had a happy Halloween from beginning to end!

The bandit looked around the sports park for an idea. Even if there _was_ an extra pumpkin for the carving contest, Sportacus doubted Robbie would be interested in the mess, given his beautiful costume. Especially with Trixie up on stage ‘breathing’ silly string all over her friends like dragon’s fire. Anyway, the villain seemed more interested in his trick-or-treat haul right now than any of the snacks available; he wasn’t even sure if Robbie had touched his popcorn yet.

The bandit’s eyes fell upon Bessie and Milford, the couple laughing and bobbing back and forth together to the beat of the spooky music that swirled in the air around them. The patch of land in front of the stage was clearly meant to be a makeshift dancefloor of some kind, and the music playing _was_ rather catchy...

“Would you do me the honor of a dance, my dear Count?”

Robbie tripped, miraculously catching himself by leaning on the booth’s counter. He set his bag of popcorn down and looked back at the bandit in apparent disbelief.

“ _Excuse me?_ ”

Yes, dancing was _perfect_! Even a man as lazy as Robbie had to enjoy _dancing_ now and again. There was no faster way to lift sunken spirits than letting good music carry you away.

“You know,” Lawless laughed playfully. He swung from side to side, shuffling toward Robbie before bumping hips with the now-flustered man. “Dancing!”

Robbie made a series of indistinct gulps and wheezes as he tried to get his brain to work again. Sportacus chuckled and gently took the man’s hand in his own. Robbie stared at it. He seemed to do that every time Sportacus touched him lately.

“Come on!”

“Wait! No! _Gah!_ ” was all the villain managed to get out as he was pulled across the sport park to the designated dancing area.

The two stared at one another, Robbie dumbfounded, Lawless bright as the sun. The vampire swallowed nervously. The bandit could feel the other man’s hands trembling. Lawless smiled up at the taller gentleman. Robbie stood where he was, eyes darting around the park like a deer searching for a predator it knew was hiding just out of view. He looked a little too nervous to dance unassisted, Lawless decided. Perhaps he should help.

“Shall I lead, or would you like that honor?”

Robbie stared at him. His nose twitched. Lawless chuckled affectionately before carefully placing his right hand on the vampire’s back. Robbie stiffened and the bandit took their right hand in his left. They were really doing this, weren’t they? He was going to dance with Robbie Rotten and _he_ had asked the man in the first place. Now it was Sportacus’ turn to be nervous. He gulped down his worries the best he could, trying to pretend they weren’t twisting knots inside him. Sportacus began to guide Robbie across the park in time with the music.

“Just relax. You’re safe with me,” he whispered as he began to move, guiding Robbie as gently as he could to the music coming from the stage. “You’ll always be safe with me.”

“I th-thought you were a bandit,” Robbie pointed out in a small voice.

Was Robbie _responding_ to his flirtatious banter? Sportacus—Lawless—offered the nervous man a smile as he felt a chill dash up his spine.

“That I may be, yet I fear you’re the one who has stolen _my_ heart tonight. I…I never thought Halloween could be such fun.”

Sportacus couldn’t believe he’d just said that.

Neither, apparently, could Robbie. The villain took in a sharp breath, his eyes wide and focused on Lawless’ chest rather than his face. Neither man could tell who was trembling more. Their awkward quiet was interrupted with Robbie yelping in surprise and pulling back sharply enough that he almost fell out of the bandit’s arms. Sportacus gasped in embarrassment, trying to help Robbie stay on his feet.

“I am so sorry! I’m sorry, Count. I…heh…I guess perhaps you’ve not as safe with me as I’d hoped,” the bandit mumbled sheepishly.

Robbie shook his head. “Wh-why?” he asked, then louder, “Why do you keep _calling_ me that! I…all night! _All night_!”

Sportacus stared at him. “Wh-what?”

Robbie stomped a foot in frustration. Without warning he reached up to his mouth and pulled a fang off of his tooth. He growled and thrust his fist into the bandit’s face. Sportacus leaned back in alarmed confusion.

“It’s _fake_ , you dolt! Fake! I’m _not a vampire_!”

Sportacus stared at the raving man. “…I know.”

Robbie stopped and stared at the bandit standing before him. He looked a little pale.

“Y-you knew it was me…all night?”

Sportacus nodded. “Of course I did, Robbie. I…your outfit is beautiful, but…but it isn’t like your other disguises.”

“It’s not a disguise! It’s a _costume_!” Robbie snapped. “The candy boy decided to be some kind of werewolf so I couldn’t very well wear my—wait. You knew it was me the whole time and you kept calling me Count Rottula anyway?”

The pair stared at one other in awe. Robbie hadn’t been in a proper disguise all night, yet Sportacus had assumed…oh no. The blood drained from the hero’s face. No. No no _no_. Oh, he hoped he was wrong.

“Sportaween? You okay?”

No.

The hero began to shake, his eyes wide in terror. Robbie had known it was him all along. All night. All night he had teased, and flirted, and _held_ …he had thought Lawless was his escape, his shield. But Sportacus had been wrong. So very wrong. He took a step back from the villain, his heart pounding in his ears, coupled with a distressing whine. He suddenly didn’t feel very well. The edges of his vision blurred and he tried to look around, get his bearings. Faces. Oh, no…so many faces. The kids were staring. The mayor was staring. The adults were…everyone knew. Everyone saw. Worst of all, Robbie saw. Robbie was right in front of him, standing there with his big grey eyes. The buzzing felt like it was drilling into his skull. Sportacus suddenly felt a little dizzy.

“Lawless?” Stephanie asked worriedly from somewhere off to his left. “What’s wrong?”

The whining cry, he soon realized, was coming from his belt. His crystal. The hero stumbled backward.

“I…I have to go,” he mumbled hazily before making a full turn and sprinting as fast as he could, paying no mind to the voices calling his name behind him.

Sportacus didn’t know where he was going and, at the moment, he truly didn’t care. Robbie had known it was him all night. He had made a fool of himself. Oh, he had known all along…no wonder he had repeatedly shirked off Lawless’ advances. There was no Lawless. There never had been. Sportacus was a fool and there was no changing what he had done.

The hero fell to a bench in a heap. He sank into the corner and clutched the sides of his head, hoping it would somehow help ease the agony in his chest. He sniffled. Everyone had known, everyone had seen. He could never live this down. Oh, he felt more humiliated than he ever had in his life. He had flirted openly with Robbie Rotten. He had taken his arm, he had danced with him…and the villain had known it was Sportacus the entire time. The _entire_ time!

How ironic that, after so many schemes and perfect disguises, Robbie had failed to run Sportacus out of town. But Sportacus may have managed to done so all on his own. How could he face Robbie again after tonight? Another sniffle and Sportacus took off his mask. He stared down at the dark fabric. At what he thought had been Lawless. He was stupid to have thought he could really be someone different, even on Halloween.

There was a quiet cough from somewhere nearby and Sportacus instinctively coiled in on himself, closing his stinging eyes for a moment in an unsuccessful attempt to pull himself together. He felt someone sit down on the bench beside him, though they waited a moment to speak.

“Uh…hey, there…Sportaspook. Are you…okay?”

Sportacus bit his lip at the sound of Robbie’s voice. He stared at the mask in his hands like his life depended on it, which he was half convinced it might. It took him a few seconds to muster a reply.

“I’m sorry, Robbie,” he said in a voice so quiet the other may not even hear him.

Silence followed.

Sportacus moved to get up. “I…I should go.”

A hand gently but firmly took hold of his arm.

“You’re not flipping off to that flying death trap of yours. I forbid it.”

Sportacus stayed still, but quiet. Robbie took his hand back.

“I hate to break it to you, but, uh…you’re terrible when it comes to disguises.”

“The kids didn’t seem to know who I was at first.” Why did his voice sound so small?

“Trippy, uh…said she pretended not to…erm…”

“Oh no,” the hero groaned, his face sinking into his hands. That…explained a lot.

“So…about…tonight,” Robbie asked hesitantly. “What was up with _that_ , exactly?”

“I’m sorry…I just…” Sportacus sighed, pulling back from his hands enough to see his bandit mask again. He ran his fingers along the fabric. “Lawless…he…he was confident and…and…”

“He certainly needed to learn a little subtlety,” Robbie added with a forced laugh.

Sportacus whimpered.

“Did you really mean all those…I mean, the, um…you know?”

The hero took a moment, then slowly nodded. And hoped that Robbie wasn’t watching him at the time. But, he probably had, seeing as how the two sat quietly for a few very long minutes after that.

Robbie cleared his throat.

“Well, look. The brats are worried and…and you forgot your jack-o-lantern back there. I worked hard on that thing and you’re taking it home with you whether you like it or not.”

Sportacus finally allowed himself to look up at Robbie. The man was still wearing his fangs, but he somehow looked more…human all of a sudden. His brow was furrowed and he was looking at Sportacus with…concern? Worry? Robbie was worried about him?

“It…wouldn’t be a Halloween party without Sportasteal hanging around whining about the brats eating too much sugar and getting sick off of ten pounds of chocolate.”

The hero smiled slightly. Robbie mirrored the sentiment.

“Are…you sure?”

“Well _someone’s_ got to make a fool of themselves bobbing for apples. And you know how I feel about— _yech!_ —sportscandy.”

“Apples?” Sportacus asked, perking up at the idea of sportscandy being some part of Halloween.

“I know,” Robbie groaned. “ _Apples_. Tainting _my_ holiday.” He shuddered. “And don’t forget, they have that movie set to go…if you can stay up for it. Getting near your bedtime, isn’t it?”

Sportacus felt his cheeks warm. “I…maybe staying up late _one_ night won’t be so terrible.”

The villain gave his hero a smile.

“So. Do I have to drag you back or are you gonna come quietly? It’s been a long night and I’m not sure I have the energy.”

Sportacus smiled. Sensing his cue, Robbie stood up.

“Come on, Lawless. We should get back before dragon girl starts breathing fire on someone again.”

Sportacus laughed at that and nodded.

“But you should probably be wearing a _full_ costume. This _is_ a Halloween party, after all.”

“Oh,” Sportacus laughed. He tied his mask bask over his face and offered Robbie a hopeful grin. “Better?”

“Better. Halloween is serious business, you know.”

“Always,” the hero laughed.

Robbie pulled his cape closer around his shoulders and nodded back toward the sports park. “Come on, Lawless.”

The butterflies returned as Sportacus followed him. Sportacus never would have thought Halloween might turn out to be his favorite holiday. At least, _this_ Halloween certainly was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I'm a tad late.  
> I tried to finish as quickly as I could...it's been a day of distractions.
> 
> HAPPY HALLOWEEN, everyone!
> 
> The story is over, so...what could be left?


	6. Epilogue

Sportacus laid on his bed, holding the black mask in the air as he reminisced. Halloween had been almost two weeks ago now. The night had been wonderful…dancing, games, fun. Stingy was _still_ going on about how _his_ pumpkin had won the carving contest. Though it had been a bit awkward after their private conversation, everyone had been happy. Having fun together. Unfortunately, Sportacus had seen very little of Robbie since then. The villain had all but disappeared, and the town hero worried why.

Robbie had cared enough to go and find Sportacus after his outburst. The man had been civil after they rejoined the festivities. But…had that just been for show? To help the hero save face? The pair had kept a small distance between one another after that. No holding hands, certainly no kiss… Sportacus sighed and dropped the mask on his chest as he looked up at the blue-glowing jack-o-lantern that now permanently sat on a small wall-folding shelf beside his bed. Maybe Robbie had just decided to be nice to him after such an intense evening. Were they friends, at least? Sportacus couldn’t be sure, and he was scared to ask. Not that he’d had any real opportunity to ask since Halloween.

Sportacus heard the signature whoosh of air announcing the arrival of a mail tube before he saw it. Tossing his bandit mask aside, the hero jumped up and caught the tube mid-air.

“I’ve got mail!” he noted to himself. “I’ve got _more_ mail?”

He caught the second tube with his free hand as it shot in behind the first arrival. That was…interesting. Sportacus took a closer look at the tubes. The one in his left hand had a giant “#1” written on it. The other read “#2”. Well, that made things a little easier, at least. He set the second aside and took and rolled up parchment out of the first.

Sportacus’ heart skipped a beat when he saw it. The paper was a beautiful lavender. There was only one person in LazyTown who this could be from. Or so he hoped. Sportacus swallowed and carefully unfurled the sweet-smelling parchment in his hands. He wasn’t sure what to expect, maybe a few angry words scrawled across its surface stating he never wanted to see Sportacus again, maybe a beautifully penned poem confessing his love for the hero. Sportacus didn’t hold out much hope for spotting any poetry, but the other possibility felt a little too imminent for his liking. He swallowed his fear and read.

 

> _Dear Sportaspook—_
> 
> _Halloween was interesting._
> 
> _I met this loser named Lawless. He reminded me a lot of you somehow. You’re both annoyingly flippy. Despite that, he was pretty good company. He seemed to have fun, too, which is weird because I never expected a ~~hero~~ bandit like him to be into Halloween, but I guess even a genius like me can still be surprised sometimes._
> 
> _I have to say, though, I was a little sad to see Lawless go. I kind of miss him. Next Halloween is a long time to wait and see if he’ll visit again. I’ve been wondering lately if maybe he has some kind of family out there. I mean, with how flippy-floppy and health-crazed he was, part of me’s wondered if maybe Lawless was secretly some kind of bouncy elf man. Which got me to thinking…there_ is _another holiday coming up pretty soon. Maybe one of Lawless’ relatives are involved with a fat man who likes snow and looking at reindeer behinds a little too much. He probably has a stupid name like Peppy Present-Presenter or something, no doubt. What do you think?_
> 
> _Get Out of My Town,_
> 
> _RR_

 

Sportacus stared at the letter. He shook his head and read it again, still not entirely sure what to think about its contents. Was this…good news? It seemed like it might be, but it was a little hard to tell. Sportacus carefully rolled up the letter and set it aside; he was very curious about the contents of the second mail tube, now.

To his surprise, the tube was completely packed. He grabbed at the edges of the material just barely sticking out of the mass. He pulled gently, quickly realized that that wasn’t going to cut it, and started to yank at the contents to try and dislodge it from its cylindrical prison.

“How did Robbie even get this in here?” he asked himself as he slowly inched the bag out of the tube.

Once free, Sportacus immediately recognized the bag as the one he had used for trick-or-treating. He couldn’t help but smile to see it again. Robbie had taken the time to return it to him…but there was something else inside. No wonder there had been no room left in the tube. He opened the sack and peered inside curiously.

“What is this?”

He reached inside, pulling out a bright green _something_. Pants, it looked like. And a red-and-green shirt with gorgeous white accents stitched on the sleeves and around the collar. A pair of brown boots were compressed as small as they could possibly get, kept that way with a matching belt that looped around them. Sportacus pulled out a green cap that matched the rest of the outfit. His chin trembled a moment before he started to laugh, though a tear squeezed itself free at the same time.

“A-a Christmas elf costume,” he whispered to himself. “H-he made…”

Sportacus sniffled and sat down on the edge of his bed as he ran his fingers over the soft fabric. He smiled at the small _RR_ stitched into the inside collar of the shirt.

“M-maybe Robbie’s right,” the hero mused with a smile. “Maybe Lawless _does_ have some family out there.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't get too sick on your Halloween candy, folks.
> 
> Save room for the incoming Christmas cookies.
> 
> Make Robbie proud.


End file.
